1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to lighting systems and more particularly to decorative lighting systems designed to provide wide and even lighting of a room such as a kitchen. The invention comprises, preferably, fluorescent tube type lighting modules which are, in themselves, individual drop lighting modules. The invention, however, should not be considered as limited to kitchen use as it is adaptable to a wide range of room configurations and sizes since the basic lighting modules may be combined to form a wide variety of integrated lighting configurations.
2. Prior Art
Drop ceiling lighting arrangements are in wide use, particularly for kitchen lighting. Such arrangements commonly take the form of a full area drop ceiling with inserted translucent panels behind which are placed fluorescent tube type lighting arrangements. The ceilings may, of course be fully translucent but, normally, such an arrangement will provide too high light intensity.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,712,165, Cetrone, issued Dec. 8, 1987, discloses an integrated system of fluorescent tube Lighting units each of which comprise a slotted plastic surround tube incorporating therein a fluorescent lighting system comprised by a fluorescent tube and appropriate ballast. The integrated system uses T and angle couplings which are suspended, by rods or rubes, from the ceiling per se. The lighting units according to this patent suffer from the disadvantage that the system cannot be considered decorative in view of the slotted tube system and, furthermore, is difficult to assemble or service since the supports in an integrated system are interdependent and removing a support for one unit will render the support insufficient or unstable for one or more adjacent units.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,096, Taylor, issued Jun. 20, 1978 and 4,413,311, Orenstein, issued Nov. 1, 1983 show other forms of integrated lighting systems using modules However, these systems are complex, expensive to produce and install and not subject to wide usage.